The Students of the 78th Class
by Crazycatwin
Summary: All relationships had to start somewhere. This is how the 78th class of Hope's Peak Academy became as close as they were. Highlights friendships between characters. Different characters each chapter as connections slowly start to form. Pre-despair. Now accepting requests.
1. Chapter 1 Hina and Sakura

Things were awkward among the 78th class of Hope's Peak Academy, to say the least. Their first week of their new lives at the school was coming to end. However, because of the sheer diversity of the students, few friendships had formed. People like Leon Kuwata, and Sayaka Maizono who would immediately have been popular at other schools shifted awkwardly in their seats. There were a few problems. Chihiro was shy. Kyoko wasn't interested. Ishimaru was forceful. Yasuhiro was old. Byakuya was pretentious. Toko trusted no one. Celestia wanted to keep up her air of mystery. Mondo was the leader of a biker gang. Sakura was terrifying. Hifumi's hobbies creeped everyone out. Mukuro was a soldier who spoke to no one. That leaves the class with five normal people. Junko and Sayaka had talked a little because of their similar careers, but found they had little common ground. So now, Sayaka was clinging to Makoto because of the middle school excuse.

This placed Aoi Asahina in an interesting situation. She had tried to talk to almost every girl in the class. She found that she couldn't really relate to Sayaka or Junko. Kyoko, Mukuro, and Celeste weren't very responsive, but Celeste at least humored her. Toko had made what she thought of her VERY clear. Chihiro was nice, but seemed uncomfortable when Aoi talked to her, so she decided not to bother her. That left Aoi with Sakura being the only girl she hadn't tried to make friends with yet. She would have done so sooner, but she learned just yesterday that Sakura was indeed a girl. So after classes ended today, she resolved herself to talk to the massive girl. At the end of sixth period, she made a beeline for Sakura's desk, making sure not to miss her.

"Uh, hey! So um...my name's Aoi Asahina, but all my friends call me Hina. I love donuts and any kind of physical activity! Ooh I also love animals, but I don't have any pets. I have a little brother named Yuta, and he's pretty athletic, but I can beat him in anything swimming related. I actually got invited here because I can swim REALLY well. I'm sorry, who are you again? I knew your face but I totally forgot your name." All of this was said in about the span of about 20 seconds.

"My name is Sakura Ogami," was the response she received from all of that.

"That's cool. I really like the name Sakura cuz it just sounds so pretty. You know, you look really athletic. What's your Ultimate skill?"

"I am the Ultimate Martial Artist."

"Wow, that's so awesome! You must do all sorts of really difficult training to look so good! What's your secret?"

"I don't really have a secret. I suppose I just make sure to have lots of protein and to never let my body fall out of shape."

"Aww man seriously? I mean if there is one thing that I was blessed with, it's my ability to eat whatever and not gain weight. Like, if I go a day or two without donuts, I think I start withdrawing, you know? I think if I tried to go on a hardcore athlete diet I would die." She suddenly stops at this. "I rambled again didn't I? You're probably thinking, " why is this crazy chick talking to me?"" I just kinda get excited, and I really wanted to get to know you so I just-"

"I think we'll be great friends, Hina."

A/N: So the summary kinda explained things, but here's my full idea. This is going to be about how the 78th class becomes so close over the year, starting with the obvious groups of best friends, and later encompassing the friendships they have as a group. These are gonna be sorta chronological, as in my take on who becomes friends with who fastest, but I'll also take requests later on for individual interactions between characters. That's about all I have to say for now, but I'll probably update the next chapter this week.


	2. Chapter 2 Hifumi and Celeste

Hope Peak's 78th class was a weird one. When just looking at them from a distance, no one demonstrated this more than Celestia Ludenberg. While her red eyes and whitened skin alone would have been enough to convince any bystander of the school's oddity, there was one detail that was far more telling. She dresses exclusively in a gothic lolita style, forsaking any sort of school uniform.

It was this detail that caused one Hifumi Yamada to take an interest in her, and it was this detail that convinced him to speak with her alone after school.

"So my fellow otaku, which fandoms do you prefer?" It was this line that caused Celeste to turn around and stare.

"Whatever do you mean? I have little interest in such things."

"Ohoho, Miss Ludenberg, you need not hide your true nature from me. If you are one of the ones who wish to hide their passions out of shame, I will not tell anyone, even if I don't encourage conforming for the sake of your reputation."

"I have no idea what you are talking about. I have done nothing to make you so sure of my "true nature" as you call it."

"Miss Ludenberg, all I must do is take a look at your dress. Your outfit says all I need to know that you are an otaku at heart. Why else would dress in the style of gothic lolita?"

"And if I dress like this not because for love of anime and manga, but only because I like it?"

Hifumi's expression darkened at this.

"Well I am afraid that I would have to ask you to change into a more appropriate outfit. To wear the badge of an otaku, yet not truly understanding its meaning would be an insult. It would be like wearing a shirt with a video game character on it, yet never actually a playing a game that the character starred in!"

"That is quite an interesting outlook, but who are you to tell me how I should dress?"

"I am a crusader of justice! To defend the honor of my sisters-in-arms- the ones who like gothic lolita- I am to ask any non-lovers of the style to refrain from dressing like one. After all, what if I had been a lover of gothic lolita, and you said that to me? I would be heartbroken that you don't actually understand me and my passion while only having a passing interest in what I am truly enamored with, or even that you were mocking me. I would have thought you cruel for bringing my hopes up. So please, do not claim to understand a community that you are not a part of."

Celeste pauses at his words to think for a moment.

"You bring up a very good point. I promise that I will not offend the lovers of gothic lolita any further. Good day, Hifumi." At this, she walked away and returned to her dorm.

When she came into class the next day wearing the same outfit, Hifumi knew he had found a kindred spirit. After all, she was basically admitting to being an otaku, even if it was indirectly and only to one person. That didn't stop Hifumi from being any less excited or any less proud.

A/N: I ship it. I felt that these two would go next because a lot of the other friendships are going to develop from forced situations, and I don't think that Hifumi would've been too shy to ask something like this right off the bat. And that part at the end, I felt was pretty fitting. Hifumi is very obvious about his love for his hobbies, so I bet he feels bad for the people that are too shy or too scared of rejection to admit their "otaku-ness".


	3. Chapter 3 Chihiro and Mondo

Hope's Peak's 78th class had some (comparatively) normal students. At a first glance, Chihiro Fujisaki would appear to be one of them. She excelled in class, and she could program. Those were her two unique features. Of course, they would be, if she was actually a "she". Since Chihiro happened to be a boy, he had all sorts of problems that came with pretending to be a girl. Girls, for one, were one of those problems. Boys too, but for a whole different reason.

A few days ago, Hina had come to him with an offering of friendship. Chihiro liked Hina, he honestly did, but he noticed how she was specifically going after all the girls in the class with the same offer. This made him think that she didn't want to be friends with a boy. Sure, he could have acted normal, after all, he wasn't planning on revealing his gender any time soon, but he would have felt bad about taking advantage of Hina like that, and she got the hint, so it's OK, right? That was what he wanted to think, but seeing Hina and Sakura laughing together- well Hina was laughing, Sakura's face just twitched up a bit- made him feel a little regretful. He had just felt weird about it because he knew she was looking for girls to hang out with so he kinda just...blanked.

These have been the sorts of thoughts running through his head ever since he enrolled in Hope's Peak. If he tried to make friends with girls, he would feel awkward about it because he's a boy, and if he tried to make friends with boys, he knew they would feel awkward about it because they would think he's a girl. The idea of a guy and a girl having a one-on-one relationship and not liking each other wasn't something common, and no matter what Chihiro did, it would lead to that sort of situation. Sure, he could try to talk to Makoto or Hifumi because they had been getting along pretty well with Sayaka and Celeste respectively, but what if they actually were more than friends? Like, what if the two of them just looked like guys who could make friends with girls and were actually going out with them? Then Chihiro would look like he were trying to get in between them.

It was with this train of negative thinking that Chihiro was walking through the deserted hall, tears welling up in his eyes from his own thoughts. Not seeing where he going as he was trying to stop himself from crying, he accidentally crashed into another person. Which caused Chihiro to fall onto to the ground from the sheer size of the person he had ran into.

"Aww damn! Hey, watch where the hell you're going!" The person who yelled this was Mondo Oowada, who had also not been looking up because he was glaring at worksheet in his hand.

"I-i I'm sorry!" Chihiro choked out this line, and promptly started to cry. He felt as if he had just isolated himself from another one of his classmates without even trying, and was beginning to wonder if he should just go back to home school with his dad because he just couldn't seem to stop people from-

"Shit! Uh, please don't cry. Look, it's all my fault so please just stop crying okay? Damn, I must look like such an ass."

"No, I wasn't looking where I was going and I walked into you! I'm sorry!" Tears start flowing from his face even harder after this. He knows it's a stupid thing to get so upset over, but Mondo just sounded so mad and the stress of everything else made it so Chihiro just couldn't make them stop.

At this, Mondo just stops for a second and stares at the crying boy in front of him. After a moment's hesitation, he reaches out his hand. "Here, get up."

Not wanting to make him any angrier, Chihiro grabs his hand because of the forcefulness of his voice. "Thank you." As Chihiro gets up, he notices the look on Mondo's face, and responds with another murmured apology.

Finally taking in the personality of the person in front of him, Mondo just sighs. "Look kid, it's not you. I just bombed a math thing so I'm kinda pissed off right now, alright?"

"Oh, what's the problem?" Shyness forgotten as curiosity gets the better of him. After all, if he could him out, maybe he could make up for the whole falling thing.

"Just this damn equation worksheet. God, I hate geometry."

"I see the problem. You multiplied pi before squaring the radius. You only got so many wrong answers because it was a consistent mistake."

"Ah, really? Well that was pretty fucking dumb. Thanks anyway kid."

"No problem." Chihiro smiles at this. At least he isn't mad anymore.

"Say, I was just making a cafeteria run. Do you wanna, uh, hang with me? You know, as thanks and an apology for making you freak out like that."

"No! Um, I mean…Yes to the cafeteria part, but no, it's not your fault!" He hangs his head down. "I was about to cry anyway."

Mondo stops for a moment, then suddenly looks enraged. "What kinda prick would make a chick like you cry? Where is he? I'll break his fucking arm! I can't stand guys that would make a girl cry!"

Before even listening to Chihiro's response, he was running down the hallway Chihiro came from. Unfortunately, the only other person in that hallway happened to be the Ultimate Chef. Needless to say, Chihiro would've tried to stop Mondo from grabbing him and hanging him on the coat rack, but once he started flirting with Mondo, he realized it was a lost cause.

A/N: This chapter was so long, so why does it feel so bad? I mean, I walked into the chapter confidently, but then Mondo had to start talking, and my writing went all downhill from there. I mean, I liked Chihiro's monologue, but since I had no idea how to continue the conversation from here, I just decided to punish Teruteru for it. Sorry bro, but Mondo ACTUALLY comforting him the day they talked for the first time was just not happening.


	4. Chapter 4 Leon and Sayaka

Hope's Peak Academy accepted students from all sorts of backgrounds. As long as you were the best in your field, for a teenager anyway, you would get an invitation. The 78th class had this a little better than the other years. Honestly, knowing 30 different languages was way more of an achievement than literally being born, and being the son of a mob boss who followed the law so strictly was far more interesting than being the son of a mob boss. Among the teens who had weird professions for their age, like gambling and nursing, there were the students with talents that many teens could claim to have, except Hope's Peak students would take that talent and become the mascot for anything involving that activity. Sports are the biggest example. There are many teens that are good at sports, but are they good enough to walk into the gymnastic competition before even making a routine? That's the kind of athletic superiority that was to be expected at Hope's Peak, and never going to a single practice follows close behind.

For Leon Kuwata, baseball was to him as breathing is to most people. You never have to focus on it, it takes no effort, and you don't care about it unless you can't do it, not that he was ready to admit that last one any time soon. It was also boring to consciously do for long periods of time. While he may have been invited to Hope's Peak because of his baseball skills, he was looking to change his image. He decided that what he really wanted to be, was a musician. Did he have any music experience? No. But hey, baseball was easy, so why wouldn't music be? Hope's Peak naturally had students that were invited for their musical talent. Of them, Leon could think of two, the Ultimate Musician, and the Ultimate Idol. Who better to give him tips than one of them?

He had tried his luck with the Ultimate Musician, and it was...interesting to say the least. He asked one of his upperclassmen about her, a guy with pink hair, (Leon thought he rocked it) but once he mentioned asking her for help, it got weird. He just kinda stared at him like he was spouting nonsense for a second, so Leon said he was serious. The upperclassman put his hands on his shoulders, looked him in the eye and said "Don't". After seeing the visible trauma on the guy's face, Leon decided to talk to Sayaka instead. He had asked Makoto, bless his soul, to tell her he wanted to talk to her. Sayaka had mixed feelings about his idea.

"Let me get the straight. You actually don't like baseball, you only played because of peer pressure, and you've decided to quit playing entirely. You also decided that your real goal in life is to become the lead singer of a punk rock band. Why?"

"Huh? What do you mean "why"? I never liked baseball in the first place, and I found my true calling. What's so weird about that?"

"How much do you know about the music industry?"

"What does that have to do with anything?"

Sayaka was hiding her annoyance at this point. "If you want to become a musician, you're kind of at the mercy of the industry. You also need bandmates, sponsors, gigs, equipment, and about a thousand other things."

"Well, if you got talent, that stuff will work out in the end, you know? Like, are you in charge of everything?"

"No, but that's not the point! And how do you even know that you'll be good or popular, anyway?

I mean, I know that I can sing, but I'm not just going to walk up to Sakura and be like "Hey, what's up? FIGHT ME." Just because baseball is easy to you, doesn't mean that everything else will just fall into your lap."

Leon, being who he was, did not take this the best. "And what the hell gives you the right to say shit like that? You don't even know anything about me! I just go to you asking for help and you instead criticize me and my dreams."

"Leon, I'm just being realistic here! I'm not saying you can't do it, just that you shouldn't expect success to come to you the moment you have an idea! You just suddenly decided to become a musician, and you think it'll be easy?"

"Hey, I didn't "just suddenly" decide to become a musician. I have a reason, you know?"

"Oh, and what would that be?"

"Well there's this girl, met her at a hair salon, actually, and she totally digs musicians. I don't know her much, but I really want to, you know? If I were a musician, she'd definitely take an interest then, am I right?"

Sayaka just stares at him for a moment. She had no idea what he was going to say, but now she wished he hadn't said anything at all.

"So, what you really meant to say at the beginning of this conversation was "I hate baseball, and how do I pick up chicks?" You could've made this _so_ much easier if you had said that in the first place."

"Yeah, I coulda said that, but same thing anyway. I already decided to get her to go out with me, by becoming a musician!" He declares proudly. At this point, Sayaka realized that Leon had probably never had a normal girlfriend, or he would've realized it sooner.

"Just ask her out."

"What?"

"Ask her out."

"Are you kidding? Her exact words were "I only date musicians", and you want Leon, the baseball player, to ask her out?"

"How do you know she wouldn't "lower" her standards for a student of Hope's Peak? If given the option between a novice musician or an athletic superstar attending the best school in Japan, it's pretty obvious what most girls would choose."

Leon raised his eyebrow, like she was speaking nonsense. This fact clearly hadn't sunk in yet, probably because he _still_ didn't see his talent as actually being worth something. To him, the ease at which baseball came to him made him unable to realize that his skill was unusual. He honestly did not understand how people weren't as good as him, and that was his problem. Sayaka was beginning to realize this too, so she had decided on some opportune ego-stroking. It wasn't that she had a particular liking towards Leon, in fact, she kind of wanted to punch him right now, but there were so few students at Hope's Peak, and no one had an interesting love life. She was mainly trying to set him up because she was bored of not having any cute couples to squeal over. She decided on the perfect way to wrap her argument up.

"Trust me, I know what I'm talking about. After spending years with my idol group, I know what I'm talking about. The girls would bring over their new boyfriends, and once they broke up, we would all comfort the girl affected, and talk about how we knew he was a jerk all along. Moral of the story, I know how to convince girls with very certain standards to go out with a guy I really want them to be dating. Well, we winded up egging around half of those guys' houses, but that's not really the point."

"Wait, so you actually want to help me get a girl to go out with me? Now I need to ask _you_ why."

"Oh, because it would be fun," she said offhandedly. "Guys don't really get it, but meddling in relationships is a lot of fun, especially when they go just the way you want them to. "

"I think I'm better off not understanding."

"Good, I'm glad we agree. Now, where do we start? Ok, tell me everything you know about her."

A/N: I'm pretty sure we all know where this is going XD. I promise this story isn't just "look at the all the ships", but yeah, the fleet is still pretty important. I'll try to balance it out a bit more later on, but for now, I'm starting with one-on-one. I bet you're all wondering where Makoto is, but I'll just say that he'll be in either the next chapter, or the one after that. I _really_ want to do his chapter, but I believe in character equality for all.


	5. Chapter 5 Kyoko and Makoto

Hope's Peak Academy was governed by a board of directors and a headmaster. All things considered, both factions shared power and had few large disagreements. The only time there ever was strife between the two would be during the process of scouting potential students. Both could easily agree on athletes, famous people, or students who had made substantial profits from their talents. After that, you could usually find some sort of argument popping up. It was pretty much tradition for every year to have a student that the board didn't want, and a student that the headmaster didn't want. The headmaster would choose someone with a controversial talent ("Jin, he's yakuza for God's sake!"), and the board would choose someone with a massive reputation but a shitty personality ("She is literally abusing her classmate!"). One side would pretty much ignore the other, and invite the student anyway. While the headmaster stuck to his usual methods ("Damn it, why do we need another lucky student?"), the board decided on something a little different this time ("How the hell did you guys even find out I had a daughter in the first place?"). In the end, both students had been accepted, and after the new students had some time to settle in, Kyoko Kirigiri decided to confront her father.

Said conversation happened to be the reason why she was silently seething as she walked through the halls. She had decided to talk to him as if she was a student talking about the beginning of her semester. Easy enough, right? No, he just had to stop her right as she was beginning and started reminiscing about her mother. What gave him the right to speak as if _he_ were in charge? He was her headmaster, yes, but she hadn't seen him in over ten years, and he treated it as it was him who approached her! She had put the Kirigiri family name at risk of dishonor by gaining publicity so that she could attend this school, and he acted like it was nothing! Worst of all, even though he knew nothing about her, he still managed to push all her buttons like it was nothing! Whatever. She had gotten what she came here for, so all she had to do was leave this school and return to her grandfather. If nothing else, it would hurt his reputation because no student has ever left Hope's Peak before graduation since its conception. She wasn't very enthusiastic about the reception her old school would give her for coming back from the greatest school in the country after dropping out, but she couldn't really bring herself to care. She had every intention of calling her grandfather and requesting to leave as soon as possible. If she were lucky, she could probably catch a flight as soon as tomorrow- and there's someone else walking down the hall. She really does not want to deal with anyone right now. She just hopes he ignores her and keeps walking. No such luck, as the boy known as Makoto Naegi has a compulsion to befriend everyone he meets. (Serial killers and affluent progenies notwithstanding)

"Oh, hey. Kyoko isn't it? You're in my class, aren't you? I've been meaning to talk to you for a while, but you always leave class so early, I haven't managed to catch you before you disappear for the day."

"What do you need from me?" Looking back on it now, she admittedly did leave little room for anyone who wanted to speak with her to have a chance.

"It's just uh…nobody really knows your talent, and I was kinda curious, you know? I tried finding out about you on the thread, but I didn't even get your name until I came here."

"I could ask the same of you."

"Huh?"

"Everyone else at this school has made it abundantly obvious what their talent is, and yet you haven't. I did not check the thread, but I believe I can guess what talent each student has. As for you, your lack of trying to con me into paying lucrative fees for fortunetelling or dropping your anime porn has made me unable to discern your talent."

He laughs nervously at this. "Yeah, I guess I haven't done anything like that. My talent's nothing special anyways. I won the lottery to gain entrance into this school, so I received the title of Ultimate Luckster."

"I see, so they decided to see how an average high school student would fair in an environment designed for cultivating talent."

"That's... a pretty accurate description." The conversation reaches an awkward stop at this point, as Makoto's instincts tell him that trying to make small talk would be bad, so he decides to wait for her to speak up. This action is appreciated and rewarded.

"Ultimate Detective."

"Huh?"

"You wanted to know my title, so I told you. I was invited for being a detective."

"I guess that makes sense. That's probably why you're one of the smartest people in our class. Being a detective and all, that means you need to have knowledge in a lot of fields, right?"

"That's correct." Kyoko thinks for a second, then suddenly makes up her mind. "As for other students doing well academically, why would that be? This year has no students that were invited for academic abilities. Why do you think that certain other students are doing well?"

A little caught off guard by her question, he takes a moment to respond. "Well, for the students that stand out, there's Kiyotaka, Byakuya, and Chihiro. Kiyotaka is the Ultimate Moral Compass, and success in school means a lot to him. Byakuya got invited for being the Ultimate Affluent Progeny, so he probably wants to keep up his good name. As for Chihiro...programming involves a lot of math, doesn't it?"

"Correct. I came to a similar conclusion. While this isn't necessarily difficult to figure out, you need to pay attention and analyze the specialties of each person, and how they relate to a seemingly unrelated topic."

"So uh, did I just get tested by the Ultimate Detective?"

"Yes."

"Did I pass?"

"I suppose so."

"You suppose so? Is there any way for me to turn that into the definitive yes just before it?" he asks kind of jokingly.

"Probably not. That wasn't very difficult, after all." She pauses for a second. "Well, I don't think everyone in the class would've been able to come to those conclusions."

"Why do you say that?"

"All of your answers involved knowing the talents of your classmates. In all honesty, I doubt all of your classmates would care to know about each other. You only know out of your interest in others. After all, you're the only so far who has questioned me on my talent."

"So you're saying our classmates don't know anything about each other, because they don't want to know?" At this, she nods. "That's crazy! We are way more social than that."

"Some of you, maybe, but have Byakuya or Mondo tried to talk to you?"

"Well, no, but I'll prove it to you! In homeroom tomorrow, I'll introduce you. I know anyone would think it would be cool to meet an actual detective, and once they know that people like you are here, they'll realize how interesting our other classmates are." At this, she just kind of stares at him. He said this whole thing with a straight face and with conviction, as if he actually believed what he was saying. He did not exhibit any signs of lying, which means he was planning on going through with this. Only a short while ago, she had been planning her flight back to her old home, but imagining his disappointment if he wakes up tomorrow finding his plan ruined, made her change her mind.

One more day couldn't hurt, could it?

A/N: Hahahahaha yes, I am back in the zone! The last two chapters were kinda iffy, but this one, I can be proud of. So I know I said character equality, but I have to write out the scene mentioned above, or I'll probably cry. It worked out better than I thought, though. I actually have a foundation to write this story on, these first few chapters were just the warm-up. It won't be the next chapter because I'll just say "while Kyoko and Makoto were talking" and go on from there. These chapters just keep getting longer and longer, so that's pretty good.


	6. Chapter 6 Byakuya and Toko

Hope's Peak Academy chose their students on individual success. Even if a high school soccer team had won every game for twenty years, it was a team effort, and the school didn't want fifteen ultimate soccer players. Individual success was something that the 78th class could easily claim, as more than one student had already made careers out of their talent, and quite a lot of money, too. Perhaps no one demonstrated this fact more than Byakuya Togami. While his title may be the Ultimate Affluent Progeny, he had to work for his success, and succeed he did. His achievements will not be listed here because the legality of them may be called into question, but the point is that he is young and he has made a fortune. Honestly, he could drop out of school right now, and still have enough renown to continue to amass wealth, just with seven more free hours to do so. However, dropping out was out of the question, so he decided to make the best of it. While he was satisfied with attending the best school in the country, there were other things to be gained by going to Hope's Peak. Byakuya had gained a head start by being able to scout out the future of Japan, and maybe get a few in the pocket of the Togami Corporation.

Unfortunately for him, this is where the individual success thing bit him in the ass. Byakuya was used to investing in companies with promising ideas and individuals who had already profited from their ideas. While some talents were obviously more profitable than others, (moral compass, how do you make a job out of that?) he was reminded that they just teenagers. As such, his options were very limited. Most of his classmates had talents that were either impossible to invest in, and the others had talents that he had no interest in. He had tried recruiting the Ultimate Chef to be his personal cook, but he decided that he wanted to keep his sanity, (and chastity) so he withdrew the offer. At this point, he had very few options, but it would be an insult to not make any connections at a school full of people who were guaranteed success. (Even if Byakuya didn't think they would deserve it.) Since he had no interest in investing in Hifumi's anime porn, he had only one other option at this point.

It was at this moment in time that Byakuya Togami decided he hated his life.

"I just wish to speak with you about your upcoming releases." He had spent all of one minute talking to Toko Fukawa. He had been _trying_ to convince her to change publishers to one owned by Togami Corp., but well, he hadn't quite gotten that far.

"H-how do I know you're not trying to t-trick me? "S-she looks dumb so I bet she wouldn't know if I was trying to s-swindle her." I bet that's what you're thinking about m-me. I just look so w-weak so you think you can make money off of me, d-don't you?!"

He was starting to get annoyed at this point. This was a business deal, he didn't care about her baseless insecurities. "Your works are in high demand, Ms. Fukawa, I am just another bidder for your skills. I already researched the other prices you have sold your works at, and I am willing to buy your next piece at a 7% increase from your last book. In addition, I will have a sister company advertise by requesting your book be placed in optimal positions at bookstores. All I ask is a share equivalent to your prior dealings." What he was offering wasn't a bad deal by any means, but if she agreed right now, before seeing any other offers, he'll be getting away with a lot better of a deal than if another company had made other offers. He also knew that each book she writes does better than the last, and even though he was requesting an equivalent percentage of the profits, that translated to a lot more profit. That wording just sounds better. Now, he just had to wait for the bargaining and then he'd be done.

"Okay."

He reeled at this. "Excuse me?"

"I said okay. I don't care who my publisher is, and everything you said checks out. M-my next book won't be ready for a couple months, though."

He was not prepared for this. He has rarely ever had anyone take him up on his first offer. Was she really that stupid?

"Y-you look surprised. I'm not dumb enough to actually try and bargain with the Ultimate Affluent Progeny. I b-bet I would wind up paying more if I did."

While that might have been his plan, how the hell did she figure that out?

"I take my books very seriously." She pauses for a second and giggles creepily. "Master."

What? Did he hear that correctly? He hoped to God he didn't but… "Did you just call me master?"

"Y-yeah. Is there a problem?"

She doesn't see the problem. She doesn't think anything is wrong with the situation. Byakuya was done with this, but he never gave up on a business deal. So he calmly stood up and said "Contact me when you've finished your book," and promptly walked out the door. No, he wasn't running, that was a brisk jog.

A/N: I just had to, you guys. Do I ship it? Good question. I like post-Ultra Despair Girls Toko, but I don't think he does. More importantly, I am now taking requests! Tell me the characters you want involved and the topic of conversation. You can give a setting or situation, but I need at least a character and a topic. I'll try to work on them, but there's a few things I want to handle on my own. Please don't request Chihiro's gender, Genocider Jill, Celeste's real name, or Daiya, because I'll work on those when I'm ready. Leave your requests in the reviews, or PM me. I'll PM you before I post your chapter, to make sure I got it the way you want.


	7. Chapter 7 Makoto and Everyone Else

The school year at Hope's Peak always started out awkward. Students were invited because of their diverse talents, which naturally led to a diverse student body. At regular high schools, you could filter through hundreds of people whose names you would never learn, and you could find a small group to spend your time with. Each class had less than two dozen students, so it was impossible to avoid the people around you forever. That didn't stop some people from trying. The 78th class was hit hard with the mentality to avoid each other. Some of it was from shyness, sure, but there was also the attitudes of certain students that didn't exactly encourage friendliness, namely half the class.

That was why, during homeroom, Makoto had a plan. He had thought about it for a while, and he figured out exactly how he wanted to enact his plan. He had asked the teacher who monitored home room for approval, but soon found out that the teacher didn't really care. He took that as a "yes" and walked up to the front of the room.

"Uh, hey guys," and then the stage fright struck. A deep desire to walk back to his desk and sit down welled up inside him, but he had already made a decision, so he had to stick to it.

"Yeah, hi Makoto. What are you doing up there? You gonna ask a girl out?" Leon asked kind of mockingly. Leon and Makoto were friends, but well, Leon was Leon, and that's really all that needs to be said.

"What? No, that's not what I'm doing! I just thought that… you know, we've been in school for a couple of weeks but we don't really know each other, and that maybe, we could all introduce ourselves?" It ended off sounding like a question because he couldn't really sound demanding to his classmates without having a panic attack afterwards. That statement was followed by silence. As Makoto began to regret his actions, help came from an unexpected source.

"I believe that is a great idea!" Kiyotaka slammed his hands on his desk and stood up. "In order to have a prosperous school year, we must build a sense of camaraderie!"

"Cama-what now?" The one who interrupted him was an annoyed Mondo. Their relationship is pretty self explanatory. "And Christ, you don't have to fuckin' yell!" He said, yelling.

"Excuse me? You are in the presence of an authority, so swearing is naturally prohibited!"

Before Mondo could retort, Junko speaks up. "The comedy duo is at it again. Can't you guys just chill for like, five minutes?"

Yasuhiro just laughs. "Dude, you wanna get in the middle of their dick waving contest? Good luck."

While everyone else in the room felt it prudent not to join the conversation, the original purpose of Makoto's plan had been lost. Who could help our hero now? It seemed to be a hopeless situation.

"Are you all quite done? I believe Makoto was not done speaking." All of this was said in a neutral and bored tone, but that didn't stop Makoto from offering a grateful smile in Kyoko's direction. She hadn't spoken once outside of answering questions when called upon, so her outburst was not lost on the class as everyone fell silent. "Thank you."

"I don't want anything special, just a name, and a few things about yourself. If you don't want to, that's OK, I just wanted to try, you know?" Some of class felt a little guilty at this. They realized that they weren't really making much of an effort to get to know one another. Others couldn't get less of a shit, but at least Byakuya stayed silent.

It was Hina who spoke up. "Aww, sorry Makoto. You went up there and we just kind of ignored you. But I know, you should go first!"

"Ahaha, alright. I'm up here anyways, so why not? I'm Makoto Naegi, and I was invited to Hope's Peak because I won the lottery, so I'm the Ultimate Luckster. My favorite animals are bears, but I think I like them all." He laughs nervously at that last statement. Saying he likes bears usually gets him some weird looks, but saying he likes all animals gets some loud cries of people questioning his sexuality. Then, Mondo happened.

"Bears, dude? Come on man, I had faith in you! I totally saw a fellow dog lover when I looked at you!" Here is the dreaded argument that ends all civil conversation.

"Excuse moi, Owada, but I believe you made a mistake. Makoto definitely seemed to be the type that would appreciate the subtle beauty of cats." Seeing as the most important thing in Celeste's life was her cat, this was personal.

Before Mondo could retort, help came from an unexpected source. "Celestia, I am afraid I must disagree. Naegi exudes the aura of someone who most definitely must be a dog lover."

"Hell yeah he does!" The first time Mondo and Kiyotaka ever agreed on something was interrupted by a "language, Owada", but still, it was a start.

The argument continued, devolving into a cats vs. dogs one, with everyone besides Makoto, Byakuya, Mukuro, and Kyoko joining in. After ten minutes of this, Sakura calmly stood up and ended it all with one statement.

"I think we can all agree that among all the animals in the world, Pikachu wins the battle of adorableness." She then calmly sat down. The shock of this statement caused silence throughout the entire room. She then turned to Makoto and asked him who he wanted to go next. Before he could respond Kyoko walked to the front of the room and stood next to him.

"My name is Kyoko Kirigiri. I am the Ultimate Detective. Cats are better than dogs."

So yes, after that statement, the last half hour of homeroom was spent arguing about cats and dogs. But hey, that's what all friends talk about some point or another. The fact that no one got hurt was a miracle in itself. Well, Mondo sent Yasuhiro to the nurse when he punched him in the face, but he doesn't count. It was just that Yasuhiro was the only boy on the side of cats, (Hifumi is on the side of Pokémon) and Mondo wouldn't hit a girl, so he got the short of end of the stick.

It was a decent half hour for Makoto and Kyoko, as they managed to have some quality conversation time amidst the madness. She looked around and saw the enjoyment buried beneath the yelling and decided she could wait a little longer. At least things wouldn't be boring.

A/N: Merry late Christmas everyone! I really wanted to post this yesterday, but it also kinda didn't exist yesterday. I cleaned the house for an hour, and my family stayed over for SEVEN HOURS. God, I love you guys, but get the hell out now. I just wanna write my fanfiction. On top of that, I was with family on Christmas Eve for another six. I now know my limits and I promise that it won't take the long again.


	8. Chapter 8 Kyoko and Celeste

A/N: I know I said I would try to show off all the characters before I had repeats...but writer's block happened. Soooo, I decided to take the easy way out and fulfill the first chapter request made by my loyal reviewer, Iwanaga-hime.

The students of Hope's Peak all had different styles and different tastes. Class 78 was no exception, and diversity was very clear. Personal preferences had many ways of showing themselves. Today was Sunday, which meant that there was no reason to wake up before noon. That wouldn't be true for all students, of course, as the cafeteria still had a few people enjoying breakfast, even at eight in the morning. There was Kiyotaka who was yelling at an upperclassman, for some reason or another, a few students lying dead on the floor, and about a handful of people that actually felt awake.

Kyoko wasn't one of the awake ones, no matter how much she looked it, but that beautiful cup of caffeine in her hand was about to change that.

Celeste was awake, but a little more tea could never hurt. Seeing one of the only pleasant looking people at the moment, Celeste called Kyoko over to the table she was sitting at.

"Good morning Kyoko. I do not believe we have ever really had the chance to speak. I just wanted to say that I admire the way you handled that situation a short while ago. It was quite amusing to see everyone so worked up."

Kyoko raised an eyebrow. "Weren't you one of the leaders of the "Cat Crusade"? In fact, I recall that you came up with the name."

Celeste shrugs her off. "Details, details. Anyway, what brings you here so early in morning? Not early, but for the average teenager, well…" Her sentence was left to trail off, but was completed by an agonized moan coming from the other side of the cafeteria.

"I'm used to getting up early. I just came from the kitchen after making my coffee."

"Coffee?" Celeste laughs a little at this. "I suppose it's true, then? You know, the idea that all detectives are dead inside before they have coffee, but that once they do, the answer to their case is immediately revealed."

Kyoko just gives her a flat look. "As someone who has come into contact with dozens of detectives in the workplace, I feel qualified to say that that stereotype is absolutely true."

"Well, I suppose it had to come from somewhere. I'm just here for my early morning cup of milk tea. I don't live off of caffeine, but I do enjoy the taste of quality tea. Speaking of quality, I always see Byakuya in the kitchen with a lucrative brand of coffee. I am almost certain he brings it himself nearly every day."

"That wouldn't surprise me in the slightest. The coffee the school provides is not the cheap brand, but there is a very clear difference between quality coffee and the common type provided to those too tired too care."

"Ah, it is the same with my tea. I've drunk brands claiming to be called tea, but I am almost certain that I was drinking colored dish water with caffeine additives. Fine tea; however, is very high quality, but also very expensive."

"I am not much of tea drinker, myself. I've had it a few times, but I mainly stick to coffee to wake myself up in the morning."

"That is a shame. I felt as though you were the sort that would appreciate fine tea, but I was wrong. This was a pleasant conversation, and I hope that we may chat again in the future."

"Likewise. If you would excuse me, I have some business to take care of while I still have the time."

A/N: There we go. I hope you liked it. I based the conversation on the fact the one of the best gifts to give both Kyoko and Byakuya is the fancy coffee. I'm still accepting any and all requests, so if you would, please let me get out of trying to figure out how the hell I wanna characterize Junko.


	9. Chapter 9 Mukuro and Makoto

A/N: So if you sent in a request, I got it. However, we are eight chapters in, and Mukuro hasn't gotten a single line. So uh...yeah, that's it. Oh, and this story has been relatively spoiler free, (aside from Chihiro) but if I say the names Junko and Mukuro together and you don't understand, you should probably skip this chapter.

Sometimes, it is necessary to stop for a second and think about how crazy Hope's Peak Academy is. Cultivating talent? Okay that works. Providing quality education? Yeah, yeah. Inviting students engaging in activities not suited for teenagers, yet citing said activities as reasons for their eligibility? Well…maybe not. Like, how legal is high-stakes gambling in the first place, and why does that allow Celeste to be considered a candidate? That's not the only or even the worst example in the school, even among the 78th class. No, apparently, all you need to do to be enrolled in the best school in the country you live in is be a professional in combat that involves _killing people_. It's hardly necessary to mention how wrong it is that a teenage girl was in a mercenary group in the first place, the real problem is _how did Hope's Peak find out?_ She wasn't mentioned on the website (for obvious reasons) but she still got accepted.

Mukuro Ikusaba would have been in a paranoid frenzy right about now, had her sister not told her that she was the one who informed Hope's Peak of her abilities. Mukuro wasn't happy, of course, but because of the person Junko is (manipulative and batshit insane) she managed to convince Mukuro not to worry, about that at least. As a soldier, it was expected to maintain constant suspicion, regardless of the situation. She had no intention of making friends, and everyone seemed to respect that. It wasn't like Byakuya's "I hate you all" attitude or Toko's "You all hate me" paranoia, because you could at least make a joke at those. Mukuro's disposition was more like "I'm not here to make friends, this is a mission, and we both know I can kill you". So at this point, any interaction she got was Junko talking to her in front of their classmates just to see their shocked expressions. That was fine with her; the only reason she was even at this school in the first place was because Junko guilt tripped her into accepting the invitation. People had begun to take notice of her solitude, but no one felt the need to bother her like they bothered Byakuya or Toko, mostly because everyone was pretty sure that the two of them hadn't killed people. (Ha.)

So, what happens when someone is alone? Makoto happens.

School had just ended for the day, and Makoto had politely asked Sayaka and Kyoko to give him some time to talk with Mukuro. Sayaka sent him off with a "good luck", and Kyoko just smiled in a knowing way. It was undeniable that everyone was a little put off by the Ultimate Soldier, mainly from title alone, but Makoto wouldn't let that get to him. He was a man on a mission, and nothing would stand in his way. He walked up to her as she was packing her things in preparation to leave for the day.

"Uh, hey Mukuro." Nervousness shone through. Crap.

"Do you need something from me?" She asked in an emotionless tone.

"Ah ha, nothing like that. I just wanted to see if you wanted to talk."

"About what? Do you have a problem with me?" She wasn't trying to be rude, this was exactly how she would have responded on her mercenary group. Unfortunately, Makoto wasn't a hardened man in his thirties. Makoto was a teenage boy who was now in an uncomfortable position.

"No! I just…" Mukuro didn't understand why he was having a problem speaking; why did he approach her without having a clear purpose? That made it a whole lot worse, so Makoto decided to say the first thing on his mind. "Do you wanna see a movie Friday?"

"What?" She didn't know what to expect from him, but this was most definitely not it. She wasn't so socially illiterate to not know what a movie was, but she never really had time for idle relaxation. She hadn't spoken in a while, and her surprise was written on her face.

"Uh, Mukuro? Is that a no?" Makoto was worried that he had done something wrong, but before Mukuro had the chance to go on, Junko popped in.

"I hope you can forgive my big sis, Makoto. She was just so shocked because she's never been asked out by a guy before. I gotta say though, that was pretty bold. She says yes though." And with that, she happily skipped off to go bother someone else.

Now thoroughly embarrassed, Makoto tried to rectify the situation. "You don't have to go if you don't want to. It just kinda slipped out."

"N-no it's fine."

Makoto breathed a sigh of relief. "Thanks, I was worried for a second. We can walk to the theater after school. Sound good."

"That works. Now, if you would excuse me." Mukuro hastily packed her things and power walked (ran) out the door. Everyone still in the room tried to pretend like they weren't eavesdropping and went back to their business. Well...until clapping came from the back of the room.

"Oh, shut up, Leon!"

A/N: I love that I open up word docs and think "How the hell am I going to do this", but once I start writing I think "you know what, this chapter needs, a fight over cats and dogs, that'll enrich the story" and then I look over the chapter and think "beautiful". That was this chapter. On another note, I don't ship this, but shiptease is pretty fun. Shiptease between any character is free game up until I establish that one of them is an a relationship.


	10. Chapter 10 Leon and Makoto

The 78th class had finally found common ground. (Except for Byakuya and Toko of course, that'll take a while. And maybe an apocalypse.) Some of the class had decided to poke fun at Makoto and Mukuro for the rest of the week. Well, Junko was the only one brave enough to make fun of Mukuro for her "date", so anyone else interested had to take it out on Makoto. Honestly, most of the class wasn't making fun of him, they were just showing genuine interest.

Leon, on the other hand, was definitely making fun of him.

"Makoto, I gotta hand it to ya. I was _not_ expecting you to have that much balls. Like dude, you asked out the Ultimate Soldier! I mean, Jesus, I bet Chihiro or hell, even Sayaka would've said "yes" if you asked nicely and you really wanted a girlfriend, but noooo, big boy Makoto wants one of the Amazons."

"Leon, I wasn't asking her out! I just...wanted to talk to her, but since she didn't seem really into it, I thought that maybe if we hung out a bit she would warm up a little."

Leon just waves him off. "Sure, sure. Anyway, what's your plan?"

"What's my plan? We go to the movies and come back. That's the plan!"

"No, you idiot! The plan to make her your girlfriend! You gonna try the old yawn and arm around the shoulder? Or are you just gonna kiss when the characters do?"

"I'm not trying to get a girlfriend! I want Mukuro to talk to the rest of us more often."

"Dude that's it?" Leon asks in a disappointed tone. "You cannot actually be that pure. Like, if I asked Sayaka to go to the movies right now, I would do it with the intention of making her mine. You don't ask a girl to the movies just to go to the movies."

"Leon, I appreciate your help I really do." The sarcasm dripping from his voice said otherwise. "I think I can handle myself."

"Ok…" he was not convinced at all. "But even not speaking romantically or anything, you still gotta follow protocol."

"Protocol." he repeated in a dead tone.

"Before the movie, you gotta ask her if she wants anything from the snack bar. That stuff is overpriced as hell, but it makes a good impression. If it's a horror movie, hold her when she's scared. If it's a comedy, you gotta make excellent commentary and be laughing at the exact same parts. If you're crazy enough to see a romantic movie, you _need_ to catch all the cues."

"What if it's an action movie?"

He grabs Makoto's shoulders and looks at him seriously. "Don't take a girl to an action movie."

"Then what the heck am I supposed to take her to? I'll be the one screaming at horror movies, and I bet she would just love it if I embarrassed her more by taking her to a romantic movie."

"But dude, when she's embarrassed, she's vulnerable! You can totally use that to your advantage!"

"Ok, I think I'm done now. You were a _great_ help Leon, but I seriously, I can just ask Junko. I mean, they're sisters, right? She probably knows what Mukuro would like."

"Oooh, so you're trying to make friends with the family already? You work fast."

"Yeah, I'm done."

Makoto just calmly walked out of the classroom, ignoring Leon's protests. Leon just kind of say there like a grouch, until Sayaka happened. She happily informed him that she was not planning on being "his" anytime soon...and that he should watch what he says.

A/N: So this chapter kind of happened. I'm honestly not trying to make Makoto the only important character, but I my subconscious is making me do this. Besides, this was a request from KudaKo, so that's my excuse and I'm sticking with it. Also, my last three reviews are not displaying on the site and it's kind of pissing me off right now. I mean, I got the email notification, but its been like this for a couple days now...


	11. Chapter 11 Sayaka and Disappointment

There is a secret war that occurs in every high school. Hope's Peak was certainly no different in that regard. Even the 78th class participated in this war. The battlefield is entirely within the minds of the students, but intel is a valuable resource, more precious than the lives destroyed to get it. What was this war, you ask? It was the war caused by the single worst thing known to man. Relationships. Some people just need to know how everyone interacts with everyone else. It was very important to certain types of people.

Sayaka Maizono was one of those people.

It was the Monday after Makoto's and Mukuro's trip to the movie theater. Sayaka chose to be merciful and give him a couple of days to think about it before hounding him. But no, regardless of Makoto's honesty, she would not question him directly. She would not receive the answers she wanted that way. She needed to get the full story, even if it hurt.

That was why she assembled a team. A team that suited her needs. For some reason this team consisted entirely of Chihiro and Yasuhiro.

"Alright men, we have an important mission today." She states in an authoritative tone. It was unnecessary to do so, but it was so fun, so she rolled with it. "We all have important duties we must fulfill. You all know the plan, but any questions?"

Chihiro tentatively raised his hand. As happy as he was to be called a man, this was just too much. "Why do you need me here?"

It was Yasuhiro who answered his question. "C'mon dude, we went over this. You're the only one we know that could this information out of Makoto the way we need. We could've asked someone else, but they would either say no or freak Makoto out."

"What about you guys? I know he would be honest with you, Sayaka, and I bet Yasuhiro could figure something out."

"Yeah, but he would know that I'm trying to dig for information. He wouldn't be totally thorough. The reason Yasuhiro can't go is because any teen would be freaked out if an adult- at least in age- started asking about his love life."

"Didn't you want me here? You said " Yasuhiro, you'll make a great part of the team!" Was that all a lie?"

"Actually, I just didn't want to be alone while Chihiro went on reconnaissance. I asked Junko, but she said she'd be disappointed if she heard what they really did, instead of her ideal scenario."

"Oh, I guess that makes sense." He was not the least bit offended. This was partially because he was oblivious, and partially because Sayaka knows how to twist her words. She then addresses Chihiro.

"Look, all you have to do is ask if he had fun on Friday. You're a nice girl, Chihiro, he'll be pretty open with you, and he knows that Leon's not smart enough to send a spy."

"A spy? Isn't that what you're doing right now?"

"Yeah, but he wouldn't suspect me." She notes cheerfully. "And you can't tell me you're not at least a little interested."

"So go on, man. You got this. We'll just stand over here and look like we're waiting for you. It'll be the perfect cover!"

"But, it's not a cover if you're actually doing it…" Chihiro trails off, but before Yasuhiro can think too hard, Sayaka encourages him to get a move on.

The two of them discreetly (well, one not so discreetly) watch Chihiro talk to Makoto. The two of them are smiling throughout most of the conversation, and look like they're having fun. Seeing how Sayaka and Yasuhiro were just waiting, they decided to start talking amongst themselves.

"Hey Sayaka?"

"Yes?"

"Do you really think there are spies at this school?"

"I don't know. Wouldn't surprise me though. After all, I'm sure some teen out there is doing something similar, and I'm willing to bet that Hope's Peak could find them."

Yasuhiro paled at this. "Dude, that's terrifying. What if the Ultimate Spy is listening in on us right now?" Before he could start to panic, Sayaka interrupts.

"Oh come on! I'm sure the hypothetical Ultimate Spy has better things to do than be our private stalkers! We haven't done anything worth spying on!"

"Yeah but-"

"Lighten. Up. There is no Ultimate Spy. Do you really think that the school would invite someone who would actively stalk their classmates?"

"Ok. Ok. I'm good. I'm good."

Sayaka looks lost in thought for a moment. "I heard that we have a couple upperclassmen in the yakuza, though. I wonder why."

Before that is allowed to sink and for Yasuhiro to expectedly panic, Chihiro walks back from talking with Makoto. Sayaka immediately jumps on him for answers.

"Sooo, what happened?"

"I opened up by asking him if he had fun, and he said that he did because the movie was pretty great. After that, I asked him what movie it was, and apparently they went to see the latest superhero movie. I talked to him about the movie for a bit, because I saw it, and it was pretty good. After that, they walked back and talked about school and our classmates, mostly."

Sayaka just sighs in disappointment, while Yasuhiro notices key information.

"Hey, wait. Chihiro, you like superheroes?"

He blushes a little at this. "Y-yeah. I always liked to go see them with my dad when I was a kid."

"That's so cool, man! You don't really seem like the type, but hey, you learn more about people everyday, am I right? I like some kinds, but ones that lean more towards sci-fi kinda weird me out. I like Superman, Batman, that kind of stuff."

Somehow, some way, Chihiro managed a pretty civil conversation with Yasuhiro- for more than five seconds!

Meanwhile, Sayaka was beginning to understand why Junko would be disappointed by the actual events that occurred. Looks like some more hard core matchmaking was in order! Now, who would be her next victim?

A/N: All I have to say, is that happened. I didn't want to actually write out the movie scene, because it would've been pretty boring. Also, Chihiro and Yasuhiro have done nothing to imply a love for superheroes, but come on, in a normal setting, these people have to have some sort of interests or hobbies outside of their talents. Also, this is probably as normal as Yasuhiro will ever be in my story.


	12. Chapter 12 Sakura and Chihiro

A/N: Originally wasn't going to do a chapter on these two yet. Then, writer's block happened. So, congratulations TheSenpaiOfWisdom. Here you go.

Looks could be deceiving. This was very well-known at Hope's Peak Academy. Considering the appearance of a certain Ultimate Breeder compared to his talent, and the Ultimate Traditional Dancer's appearance compared with her personality, there is more than enough evidence to support this. Among the 78th class, no one demonstrated this better than Sakura Ogami. Well, there was Chihiro, but his true colors aren't exactly common knowledge.

To Sakura Ogami, her appearance bothered her little. She was able to obtain the optimal physical condition that she had been striving for. She was aware that many would mistake her for a man, and she did not mind it.

Chihiro, on the other hand, disliked both his appearance and his own weakness. He did not want to be viewed as a girl, but at the same time, if he presented himself as a boy, he believed he would be ridiculed for his unmanly traits. So, he decided that he would present himself as an average girl, rather than be made fun of as a boy. Having to pretend to be something he was not exhausted him, but to him, it was better than the alternative.

A chance meeting in the cafeteria allowed the two of them to have the opportunity to talk. Hina was in the kitchen, and Chihiro just wanted to work on his computer somewhere that wasn't his room. Seeing him, Sakura invited him over, and he nervously accepted.

"Good morning, Chihiro."

"Good morning."

"You seem to be working very intently on your computer."

He looks up and blushed nervously. "Sorry, I'm not the best conversation partner right now. I'm just really focussed on the program that I'm working on. It involves using known inputted data to create responses best suited for the situation. It's not much, but I've gotten as far as basic greetings and simple questions." He looks up and his eyes widen. "Sorry if I'm boring you. Most people don't really care about programming."

"There is no need to worry. I invited you to come and speak with me. Please, go on."

This takes him a little off guard. "Well, umm. I use microphone inputted voice commands, and the responses come out of the speakers, or headphones, if I want it to be private. I haven't really gotten to giving it its own voice settings, so I just decided to go with mine. It's in really early stages, but I think it's going well." He ends off with a nervous laugh. The only people who ever really ask in-depth about his programs are other programmers, and even then, his dad was the only one who wanted him to talk about whatever he would like. He never really had to explain it to other people.

"I see. That sounds complicated. I believe that you will reach your goal; however, as you seem very passionate about your work."

"Well, it could go anywhere from here. It could be great, or this could be as far as I can take it. The goal I've set is kind of a massive one." Chihiro wasn't in confident in his programming. He knew that he was good. However, the goal he had set for himself was to make a fully functional artificial intelligence. He wasn't even sure if that was possible!

"Chihiro, you know that you were invited to this school for a reason, correct?"

"Huh?"

"The staff of Hope's Peak believed you had potential to do things that no one in your field has done before. If the minds behind the greatest school in the country believe you can do it, then the least you can do is believe in yourself. If not for your own sake, do it for those who believe in you. Personally, I believe that you will reach your goal."

Chihiro was taken aback. She didn't even really know what he was working on, or how difficult it was, but she still said with unwavering confidence that he could do it. His eyes started to involuntarily water, but he managed to choke out a soft "thank you".

She gave him some time to collect himself. After he did, it was back to normal conversation. " You know, Sakura, you're actually very nice. I know a lot of people might think you look intimidating, but you're one of the nicest people I've ever met."

"I would say the same to you. Most people would not shed tears over being believed in, but that just proves your sincerity." She gives a wry smile. "As for people being intimidated by me, that is why I must go the extra mile by being kind to all whom I meet."

"Y-yeah, they should just get to know you. I'm really glad I did." He gives her a warm smile at this.

"While I must work to change the impression get of me, you must do no such thing. Your aura is one of kindness, just by looking at you. The smile you have just given me would prove your character to anyone who cares to know. Your appearance matches perfectly with what is on the inside."

He immediately sobers up at that last statement, and begins to feel guilt. Here she is, talking about how great he is, not knowing the massive secret he's hiding. If she knew-

Noticing the expression on his face, Sakura backpedals. "I apologize if I have hit a sore spot. That was not my intention."

"No! It's not your fault. In fact, it's all my fault…" he trails off. It doesn't seem as though he plans on saying why though, so she chooses another course of action.

"This problem seems to give you a great deal of grief. I'm not asking you to tell me, but I want you to remember that we are all your classmates, and many of us would be more than willing to help you when you are ready. I, myself, would promise to be a nonjudgmental listener."

Startled again by her sincerity, he feels a huge weight lifted off his shoulders. He may still be keeping secrets, but at least he knows that she's on his side. He could start crying again, but he holds himself back.

"Thank you."

A/N: I love this chapter. That is all.


	13. Chapter 13 Leon and Hina

A/N: This chapter was requested by guest reviewer. I came to the realization that I really missed Hina and Sakura, and that my requests line up perfectly! I can't believe no one has complained about the lack of Kiyotaka yet, but I have no problems with that.

Pretty much every high school with a population over twenty had a sports team or ten. Sports are a massive part of the high school experience. You could almost say that athletics are underrepresented at Hope's Peak. However, amazing athletes were difficult to find at the high school level. This means that in order to get accepted, an athlete would have to be the best of the best. It's been established that Leon is a baseball god, but the 78th class had another athlete, Aoi Asahina. The difference between the two of them is pretty clear. Leon was lazy and specialized in baseball. Hina was motivated and excelled in all athletics. To say the two were polar opposites would be a pretty accurate description. Even so, having two athletes in the same year was beneficial to the school, providing useful data and comparisons. The two of them were also enrolled at the perfect time to get an experience that was unique and would be extremely helpful- but also torturous. Before class started for the day, Hina had announcement to make to Leon that would begin to set him off the stupid road of becoming a musician for a girl.

"Hey, Leon."

"Hey Hina. 'Sup?"

"Coach said he wanted to talk with you after class today."

"Who're you talking about? I'm not on a team right now."

"Wait, you seriously don't know? What kinda athlete are you? I'm talking about the Ultimate Team Manager. He's gonna be in charge of us for the year. He wanted to give us some time to adapt, but training starts next week!"

"Whoa, what? Training? I don't wanna do any training! I've never had to bother in my life, and I'm sure as hell not gonna start now, especially because I don't even want to be an athlete anymore! I wanna be a musician, remember?" It was pretty much common knowledge at this point, thanks to a certain idol spreading it around.

Hina looked a little annoyed. "Yeah, yeah, I know, whatever. But unlike you, some of us actually have to try, and Coach needs to evaluate you."

"But I already said-"

"I know you don't wanna be an athlete anymore, geez! Quit saying it over and over. But in case you forgot, you were enrolled in this school as the Ultimate Baseball Player, and the board would be really angry if you never used your talent."

"What're they gonna do, expel me? They can't kick me out if they don't even have a team to put me on!" It was at this point that the truth was made clear. For a ladies' man, Leon sure was bad with women.

Hina just sighs. "Let's try a different approach. Coach is graduating this year, and the school really wants him to work on their athletes. Between his upperclassman, yearmates, and underclassman, he's had a total of three athletes from Hope's Peak to train. Two more would be huge for him! Where's your compassion?"

Now noticeably uncomfortable, Leon had a choice to make. He made the obvious decision. "Dude, I can't handle that much work right now! I gotta work on my music career!"

"Oh come on, all you have to do is show up and do some exercises so he can evaluate you! That's all I'm asking right now."

"Fine, whatever. I'll do that." He runs his hand through his hair. "I don't wanna be trained though. I had this awesome trainer back in middle school, and I don't think anyone could compare to how great he was."

Hina beams. "Great! I'll run and tell him right now! He was really eager to meet you, for some reason."

"Well yeah, why wouldn't he?" He asks in a teasing tone.

She glares at him. "Killed the mood. Well anyway, see ya!" The last part is said as she runs out the door to tell the coach the good news. Meanwhile, Leon was miffed that she had pressured him into this.

The day goes as usual, and as he meets the Ultimate Team Manager, he just kind of stares. Turns out, he had coached Leon in the past! While the coincidence was pretty crazy, it was even more crazy that Leon _had accepted the idea of training with him._ Turns out, the Ultimate Team Manager was just that good.

A/N: So you may or may not have noticed that I'm avoiding using sdr2 characters by name, and that is completely intentional. Also, the chapter arose because it was _highly_ implied that Nekomaru had coached Leon before, and may even be part of the reason for his success. And I guess that chapter was less about the two of them, and more about making Leon less stupid.


	14. Chapter 14 Kiyotaka and Mukuro

A/N: Request by a guest reviewer. That is all.

Every high school had a method to retain order. Many schools had security guards around the school to prevent problems from arising in case a student decides to leave the campus in the middle of third period. Hope's Peak had a small population, and exclusive residents, so such measures were not necessary. If a student wanted to walk out the main entrance and not come back till curfew, nothing would stop them. This was completely unacceptable to a certain member of the 78th class, so he decided to take matters into his own hands.

But, in order to do that, Kiyotaka Ishimaru needed a team. Well, one more person more like, because then it could be a school-sponsored activity. He needed someone who adhered to the rules, someone who performed well in class, and someone who could act as an authority figure.

For the second member of Hope's Peak Disciplinary Committee, he decided that Mukuro Ikusaba would be the best one for the job. His mind set, he asked her to see him alone after class, and she agreed. He waited for her in one of the empty classrooms, and proposed his idea.

"As you may have noticed, disorder runs rampant in this school. I am certainly not against actions meant to build camaraderie, but I would like a backup in case a situation gets out of hand. Mukuro, would you be willing to join me in establishing order to this school?"

"What exactly would this entail?" She wasn't exactly opposed to the idea, but it didn't sound like something she needed to involve herself in.

"Simple. One of the main things we would do is be the middlemen between the staff and students. We would also make sure that no illicit or illegal activities are to occur on campus, and if any student is suspected of misconduct, we will do our best to bring clarity to the situation. Most importantly, we would be the force that a student would run to if they face problems getting along with another student. This is very vital, as I have seen many a situation devolve into bullying- and I will not tolerate that at this school!" That last line was burning with such passion. It showed that despite his social setbacks, the well-being of the students would always be his first priority.

"And why exactly did you ask me in particular?"

"I am happy you asked! I believe that you are a well-rounded individual. Your grades are exemplary and you always act with perfect conduct! Aside from myself, I believe that you are most fit among the class to fulfill this role. In addition, I believe that we may have common ground with our morals and values."

"What makes you think that?"

"As a soldier, I would assume that you underwent harsh disciplinary training?" It was worded as a question, and was answered with a nod. "Which likely means that you understand the value of order in our society. More than that, however, is that I deeply admire your faith in your beliefs."

"When you say faith in my beliefs…" she didn't really understand what he was getting at. She hasn't really shared her opinion about much at the school so far, so what could he be referring to?

"Why, the fact that you are a soldier in the first place makes you a strong believer in justice! To be willing to fight and die for something you believe in, why I could never be that strong! To be a soldier, you must have something to fight for, and of you are willing to die for it, that is how you know it's worth it!" Taka exclaims his speech with passion lacing his voice. Meanwhile, Mukuro stands in shock.

She had...never really thought of her time in Fenrir like that. Sure, she had fought, but thinking of it as a way to strengthen her beliefs hadn't really occurred to her. But, now that she thought about it, she supposed it was true. She also supposed that she owed him something for helping her come to that conclusion.

"Yeah. I'll help you out."

"Excellent! I knew that you would not disappoint! I shall inform the headmaster at once! If you would excuse me."

Seeing him as he narrowly avoided running out of the room because running in the hall was "dangerous for other students", she supposed that his excitement was worth the time that it would take.

A/N: So there we go. I decided not to make Mukuro a total isolationist, but I don't think she will grow particularly close to anyone anytime soon. I know Mukuro/Kiyotaka is popular, and I have nothing against it, but I don't think I can pair her with anyone because of future circumstances.


	15. Chapter 15 Sayaka and Makoto

A/N: Request from ClearlyOriginal. I don't know if this was what you were expecting, but you know, I had this idea, and I could not leave it.

As many people were quick to forget, the 78th class consisted of teenagers that (occasionally) did normal teenage things. As such, many of them were into pop culture, and the like. They also happened to know what anime was. Then, Sayaka happened.

Makoto and Sayaka were in the library, studying. Of course, most teens that get together for a study group eventually get thrown far off topic after their attention span had dried up. Sayaka had decided that she needed to pose the ultimate question.

"Hey Makoto, if you had a harem made out of the girls in our class, who would be your main?"

"Sayaka, what are you talking about?"

"This school is the perfect set-up for a harem anime! It's already a school for a special sort of people. The protagonist would be that normal guy who's too nice to say no to the dozens of girls throwing themselves at him, and there's a diverse cast of female characters! Honestly, I'm pretty sure that- if you replace the monsters with ultimates- we're in Rosario + Vampire right now."

"Sayaka, please stop this."

"I mean, you have a pretty tough choice ahead of you. This class has 3 ice queens, 2 shy girls, an idol, a fashionista, a tomboy, and an amazon. You got a lot of work ahead of you, Makoto, if you wanna choose one main. Of course, you could have two girls that always vie for your attention the entire time, while the audience gets in a heated flame war over who should end up with you."

"Why are you doing this?"

"Because, I wanna know! Pretty much every girl is datable, but one of the most important parts of having a harem is that the other girls know who's on top. With harems, there's a fifty-fifty shot we'll all be friends. The other option is that we all hate each other for stealing your attention, and we crumble into a class full of jealous rage."

"But that's not going to happen, because no one is getting a harem."

"I think you could do it, you know. I bet you could make all 9 of us fall in love with you. You could just kindness your way into everyone's heart. No joke.

"I don't want anyone to fall in love with me!"

Completing ignoring him, she continues on. "We still need to work on your harem hierarchy. We need to know where everyone is, by level of intimacy. Like, girls you love the most will be the leaders of the pack, and the girls that you don't love enough will be at bottom. Who do we want to be on the top?"

Coming to a sudden realization, he gives her a flat look. "Are you trying to ask if I have a crush on someone?"

"Absolutely."

"You're not going to let this go, are you?"

"Nope."

"Will you let me leave without further questioning if I give you an answer?"

"Yup."

"Will you be mad if I say it's not you?"

"Not at all."

"It's not you."

"Ok….."

"You said you wouldn't be mad, and I gave you an answer. Can I leave this conversation now?"

"Dang it Makoto, that's a technicality!"

"You said you would!"

"Ugh, fine. But this isn't over. Even though we're best friends- no because we're best friends- I'm not going to let this go unanswered for long." She gives him a hard stare as he slowly backs away.

Meanwhile, Byakuya was sitting in the back of the room, hoping that they would shut up. He was the only other person in the room, and he sorely regretted hearing any of that. Of course, Sayaka spots him, and immediately begins to talk.

"Hey Byakuya, if you-"

"No."

A/N: I am proud of myself for this. I have officially fallen in love with Sayaka. Also, for some insane reason, I think I'm characterizing Makoto like he was in The Abridged Thing. I don't know why, but everytime I write him saying something snarky, a little voice in my head says it in that Makoto's voice.


	16. Chapter 16 Junko and Toko

A/N: Not a request, but here is the prelude to the third main event of the story. When I say main event, I mean any chapters that directly influence other chapters in a some way. The first two events were Makoto's introduction and Makoto's date, because they spanned more than one chapter. If there is chapter title that doesn't include two names, it's probably part of an event.

The 78th class had Junko Enoshima. She was a closet despair fetishist, but to her class, she was completely normal. In order to keep up that image, she made herself do regular things that weren't in the name of despair. Of course, she would find ways to make many things in her life a gateway to despair through careful planning and execution. Her newest plan involved making her classmates get closer together, just so they could despair even further in two years time. This plan included personally inviting all of the girls (and Chihiro- she personally thought it was obvious) to a slumber party. Laugh if you want, but a lot of girls weren't really making friends with other girls. Aside from Hina and Sakura, the girls either had guy friends, or no close friends. She had to change that.

Even if it meant talking to Toko Fukawa.

She personally didn't like the freak, but Toko needed to make some friends, or she wouldn't despair as much as Junko wanted. So, in the cafeteria one day, Junko saw her opportunity.

"Hiiiiii, Toko!" Bright and bubbly would be her approach. It was fun to be happy in front of grumpy people, mainly becuase it pissed them off.

"W-what do you want?"

"I just wanted to invite you to the ultimate girls' slumber party, hosted in this school's very own gym!"

"W-why would I want to go to a l-lame party in the school's sweaty gym?"

"Welllll, all the other girls I asked are going, and the one I haven't asked yet is definitely going. It honestly be weirder if you didn't go." Appeal to her fear of being singled-out, then she'll consider.

Toko pauses for a second. "What are you guys even going to do anyways? More importantly, is the school even allowing this?"

Junko holds up a piece of paper. "Headmaster's signature. The girls of our class get the gym from 8 to 8 and we're allowed to lock the doors so no one can get in. We're also allowed to bring in outside food an drink, as long as we don't make a mess. As for your first question, watch a couple movies on the big screen, gossip, do each other's hair, talk about guys, and maybe sleep."

"W-why do you want me there?"

"'Cuz you're a girl, Duh! I invited everyone." This reaction was expected, but she wished that Toko would just agree already. "Oh, but the headmaster doesn't want us walking around in our pajamas, so we gotta change in the gym."

"No! I'm not going! I don't want any of you to see me change!"

"Jeez, calm down! Just change in the bathroom _in_ the gym. That's how I got Chihiro to come. No need to freak out." Toko obviously had something to hide about her body. Even Mr. Crossdresser didn't care that much. Judging from her usual outfits, there's probably something up with her legs. Scars, rashes, birthmarks, it wouldn't matter to most people, but to Junko, it could be blackmail gold.

She hesitated for a moment. "W-well maybe. You said every other girl is going?"

"Absolutely. Some argreed without really caring, but I know that Hina and Sayaka are super pumped."

She rolls her eyes. "Great. If by chance I _did_ go, do I bring anything?"

"Do you have a sleeping bag?"

"Y-yeah."

"Bring that. I already sent Hina and Sakura to go buy some junk food and to rent a few movies, and Sayaka's bringing some of her beauty products. Other than that, I got it covered." She didn't want to risk Toko dropping out because she had to put in effort. All she had to do was show up.

"I'll think about showing up. B-but this better not be some kinda prank!"

"Glad to hear it! Come around 7:30. A couple members of the staff will show up to make sure we're not like, holding an alcohol party."

"I said maybe! You're not going to put me on the spot or anything, right?"

"Eh, nothing more than if you're stupid enough to play Truth or Dare. They'll be plenty of inner-girl mingling, so no one will notice you for too long." Junko had a hard time believing that someone at Hope's Peak wanted to fly under the radar so bad. Come on, seriously? You are attending the best school in the country, but if anyone pays attention to you, you get pissed? She didn't understand it, but at least it gave hera little more depth, even if it was lame. Before Toko could respond, Junko decided she was done.

"See you tomorrow night, Toko!"

"Still a maybe!"

A/N: I honestly didn't even want to write Junko at all, but the only other candidate for this was Sayaka, who has been receiving enough attention. I tried to include a lot of Junko's observations and planning because she _is_ the Ultimate Analysist, too. Eh, I hope Toko didn't give in too early, but without the threat of murder, and weeks to adjust, I feel like she wouldn't start rambling about her "disgusting" self _every_ conversation.


	17. Chapter 17 The Sleepover

A/N: It has begun. The longest twelve hours in my personal writing history. Also, I'm not even going to bother with finding actual Japanese movies, so lets just all pretend that these are normal in Japan.

It had just reached eight p.m. The security dudes had finished inspecting the mountain of junk food piled up by the door, and concluded that Hina was not trying to sneak in any alcohol. The first couple hours were pretty standard. Junk food and makeup, courtesy of Junko and Sayaka, were essentially all that happened. It was revealed that the school paid for all the food because- according to Junko- the school thought that if the girls were satisfied by this, they could get out of paying for an actual field trip. Aside from Celeste revealing that her twintails were clip-ons, no massive revelations were made.

Around ten, things changed. Hina pulled out the movies that they had rented. She went through them one by one.

"Scissorhands?"

"No!"

"Why not, Toko? It's a normal movie."

"I said no!"

"Ok… Well, I also got a couple of horror movies. You know, 'cuz that's like, the main part of a sleepover."

Junko laughs. "I hope we don't have any babies here. The doors are locked so no one can escape, and it'll be pitch dark. Even if you run to the bathrooms, it'll be so loud that you still hear it, but can't see it. You know, the worst dangers, are the ones you can't see." Sure, that was perfectly worded to make it seem less appealing, but this was going to be boring as hell unless someone freaks out.

Sayaka speaks up. "Uh, Junko? I think you've scared us more than any horror movie in this pile could've managed. _The Purge_? _The Happening?_ Did you just get crappy movies so you wouldn't be scared by them?"

"No, that's totally not true!"

"Sakura?"

"That's absolutely what she did."

"Wow, did you just throw me under the bus? Sakura, I never knew you were capable of being so brutal." She was a little miffed everyone found out, but wasn't really mad at Sakura.

The conversation proceeded to the other movies. They weren't bad, but it was tough getting everyone to agree. In the end, they didn't really make a final decision. Of course, Sayaka happened, again.

"Guys, I had a feeling this might happen, so I brought the perfect backup!" She pulls a movie out of her bag. It's a romantic movie that received extremely high ratings and was said to have brought many couples together.

Chihiro tentaviely asks, "Why did you bring that one?"

"Oh, so we can mock the guys with the amount of intense bonding that will happen here, tonight."

"Just to clarify, when you say guys, you mean Leon, do you not?" Celeste asked.

"Pretty much."

"W-what do you mean by intense bonding? I didn't sign up for this!"

"C'mon Toko, it'll be fun! We just organize ourselves into pairs, and one group of three, and watch the movie with just one other person."

Hina jokingly asks, "Sayaka, is there something you're not telling us?"

"I like boys," she says flatly. "Anyways let's pick the groups. I call Kyoko and Mukuro! You know, because we're all Makoto's girls."

"Aww man, Sayaka. I want Mukuro." Junko was now whining for her sister. "Come on, as a famous person who has heard stories about my fans' sexual fantasies of me, there is a disturbing lack of incest. Every celebrity's gotta have at least ONE incest fanfiction, am I right? If they don't, their fans aren't nearly diverse enough." No, Mukuro, Junko doesn't want you to have friends.

While every sane person in the room was protesting at this logic, Sayaka gave Mukuro up. Kyoko decided just to roll with it.

"I have no idea why you would WANT that, but that's actually a pretty good excuse. I mean, thank GOD no one's made any incest fanfiction in my honor, but there's been so many fivesomes between me and my band, that I'm starting to worry that people actually believe we like each other like that. Moving on, who wants to be in my threesome?"

"I don't know about your choice of words, but I know I'm definitely gonna be with Sakura!"

"Alright, so Toko, Chihiro, and Celeste are left. Never mind, you guys can have a threesome. I'm sure among the three of you, you can figure something out."

Chihiro stood there and took it, Celeste could not care less, and Toko, well….

"I-if the doors weren't locked, I would've left an h-hour ago."

A/N: Why? Why did I do this? I'll probably do only one more chapter on this, or maybe two, if you guys like the idea. Anyways, I'm not like, actually shipping anyone here, and neither is Sayaka, she's just gonna pretend that more things happened than actually did. Also, Junko/Mukuro is just...


	18. Chapter 18 Kyoko and Sayaka

A/N: Request from fallenstreet01. May not have as much yuri as you hoped, but there will be friendship.

To the reluctance of some, and to the glee of Sayaka, the movie somehow managed to be currently playing on the screen. It wasn't a huge deal, as no one was freaking out, but Toko made her distaste known- and promptly pulled out a book. So now everyone was sort of watching the movie while also talking amongst themselves. Celeste avoided the hurdle of social interaction by pretending to be entranced by the movie. Poor Chihiro. Lucky for him, Hina and Sakura invited him over, and he was at least feeling a little better about the whole thing.

Of course, to Sayaka, this was problematic. She wasn't planning on telling the two off- as that would be a little too meddling- but she was still upset. Kyoko was charged with the task of listening to her complaints.

"-at least make an effort to…"

"Sayaka." Kyoko cuts her off. "I know that you are upset, but I am afraid that they are entitled to their own choices. I doubt that either of them have anything against Chihiro, even if she was hurt by their actions. She now appears to be perfectly content with Hina and Sakura, and that is what matters."

Sayaka huffs. "I _know_ that, jeez. But you know, this whole thing was meant to be a bonding experience, and I don't like how the two of them are going out of their way to isolate themselves. There's sixteen of us, and we have three years together. I don't want that to be full of people avoiding each other!"

"I understand your viewpoint, and it makes sense. However, you cannot force anyone to be friends with anyone else. They have shown up regardless of other circumstances, and I believe that was the best we could hope for at this stage."

She responds with a sigh. "I know, I know. It's just... I never really liked seeing people be all alone. It's even worse here because with so little of us, you notice everyone, including those that could usually just be ignored."

"I'm not saying you're wrong, and I commend your compassion, but I do not believe that much can be done at this point. If they are willing, they will warm up in time. If they are not, than I am afraid there is little you can do. Trying to force them will only make them resent you."

"I guess so, but that doesn't make it wrong to try."

"No, I suppose it doesn't. However, I advise you to think carefully about how you wish to go about this. What Makoto did involved everyone and put only his reputation on the line. If they feel as though you are singling them out or mocking them, they would not appreciate any further efforts."

"You all made great points, but I have to wonder… You talk about Makoto quite a bit. Do I smell a cruuush?"

"Sayaka, your attempts to keep up the harem charade are getting tiresome. Please stop. I know you don't actually mean it. You're bored, I get it, but please leave me out of it."

"Fine, fine, I'll stop. Maybe."

Kyoko sighs. "That's the best I can hope for right now. I have no idea why you're so fixated on the idea."

"That'll be a secret I take to the grave. Not even the Ultimate Detective has a chance at figuring out my motive."

"Oh, I think I can manage. I've solved mysteries far more puzzling than why a teenage girl wants her best friend to have a harem."

"Is this gonna be a competition?"

"No, not at all. But I will figure you out. As an idol, I am sure you know how to act to make others to see you the way you want to be seen. There must be some purpose of putting up the façade of someone who is absolutely obsessed with the idea of her classmates being in a relationship." She stops for a moment. "Or I could be reading far too much into this, and you just wanted to have a running gag of Makoto being a player."

"Yeah, pretty much."

A/N: A little more insight into Sayaka's motives. This'll probably be the last sleepover chapter, unless someone specifically wants a conversation to occur during it. So get those in by Sunday if that's what you want.


	19. Chapter 19 Mondo and Taka

A/N: Request from a guest reviewer. Honestly, I was gonna get to this eventually, but that was a good incentive.

The thing about Hope's Peak, was its unlikeliness of friendships. For some, no matter what school you put them in, it would be impossible to imagine them not being friends. Even if there were a thousand kids at their school, Sakura and Hina probably still would've been friends. For others, it was Hope's Peak's small size that brought them together. Mondo couldn't have imagined ever being friends with an intellectual shy girl, but she was pretty much his default tutor. Granted, that's all she was at this point- as they never really hung out- but he would have never noticed her if a couple hundred other people had filled the hallways.

But, if there was one thing that Mondo Oowada knew, it was that he and that stuck-up prick Kiyotaka Ishimaru would never be friends.

And if here was one thing Kiyotaka Ishimaru knew, it was that hooligan Mondo Oowada could never be a diligent student.

Of course, both were proven (somewhat) wrong on that day.

On that day, Mondo had arrived (again) late to class. Tardiness had always bothered Taka, but it seemed like Mondo showed up ten minutes late every day. He had held it in for so long, but as the staff hadn't done anything yet, he took matters into his own hands. However, he also knew that students absolutely hated to be called out in front of their peers, so he held it in until Mondo was alone. After finding his opportunity, he confronted him in the most subtle way possible.

"Mondo Oowada, I need to have a word with you!"

"Aww shit. Here comes the pissy parade. The fuck do you want?" At this point, Taka would've said something about swearing. However, he realized that if he wanted to get his point across, he would have to ignore it. That would be an issue for another day.

"I would like to have a word with you about your chronic lateness. It has become a bad habit. I understand that not every day is the same, and a miss set alarm clock can cause problems, but you do not appear to be ill, and your alarm clock should have been fixed by now. I must conclude that you are doing this on purpose!"

"So what if I am? I show up, don't I? If I want an extra ten minutes of sleep, nothin's gonna fucking stop me."

"I have solution!" He said, honestly believing the words that came next. "If you desire ten more minutes of sleep, then go to bed ten minutes earlier. That should solve your problem!"

Mondo just stares at him. "Are you fucking kidding me?"

"I do not kid! This seems to be the most logical solution to your problem!"

"You are _not_ getting it. I don't _want_ to go to school. The only reason I came to this damn place was because I'd be set for life!"

Taka becomes genuinely shocked. "You don't want to go to school!? I understand the concept of "ditching", but I cannot imagine anyone wishing to do so at this fine institution! Are the classes not fulfilling enough?"

"It's not that the classes aren't "fulfilling enough", it's that they're _boring._ " He mumbles the next part. "And a little too goddamn hard."

Now Taka may not be very good at socializing, but he's good at making a point. Along with being so studious, comes the ability to debate. After all, his aspirations _are_ to become prime minister, and to do so, requires some debating skill. Or at the very least, he could make a logical argument. Instead of giving him study tactics, or questioning how he finds these wonderful classes so boring, he tries a different approach.

"Mondo, you were invited to this school for being the leader of a biker gang, am I correct?"

"The fuck that's got to do with anything?"

"As the leader, your actions are likely observed and followed by the members of your gang. Regardless of what they are like, I am sure that at least some of members look to you as a pillar of guidance."

"Well no shit, Sherlock. I'm their leader. I gotta watch out for them, you know? And when I do, they respect that, and they respect me."

"With so many people following you, I am certain that your actions rub off on some of them."

"Of course they do. They're my guys, and we all gotta know where everyone's coming from."

"The question you must ask yourself, is this. "Am I the best the role model I can be?" If you have a habit of skipping class, won't your "guys" do the same? What if you become the justification that they use to skip class? If someone they admire does it, and they emulate it, what will happen to them? You may be set for life, but if someone not attending the finest school in Japan does the same, what then? Are they set for life? How would not having a high school diploma impact their future? You are a leader, and regardless of circumstance, people will try to be like you."

Surprisingly, Mondo didn't blow up. Before Hope's Peak, the biker gang life was the only one he had set for himself, but now? He was starting to have other plans. He wasn't gonna disband his gang, or some other shit like that, but he realized that being in a biker gang for the rest of his life wasn't really his future anymore. But his guys? If they fucked up their future because of him, how could he live with himself? Even knowing that graduating here would never leave him poor, his guys weren't that lucky. He couldn't really decide. All this moral shit was hard. He was done for today. He didn't respond, and eventually Taka walked away.

At least he came in on time the next day.

A/N: So they aren't friends quite yet, but they've reached a shaky understanding. About Chihiro, I hadn't really specified his relationship with Mondo yet. I honestly believe they would make better friends post-reveal, you know?


	20. Chapter 20 Makoto and Celeste

A/N: Here is the long-awaited chapter requested by ClearlyOriginal. Wanted to do it sooner, but I had a bit more of a problem with this one. I'm afraid it won't be outright more romantic, but I will try to make it a little more personal than harems. But I still have no regrets about that chapter.

Stories of the sleepover had worked its way to the ears of the boys. Namely, Sayaka complained to Makoto about Celeste and Toko quite a bit. Being the protoganist he was, he decided to talk to both of them. Not about the sleepover, of course, but just to talk. Celeste had formed a weird friendship with Hifumi, but Toko on the other hand, was just being her usual self. Makoto decided to talk to Celeste first, as she would probably be less trouble. He wasn't going after them, it was his pure friend-to-all attitude that drove him. But...the fact that both of them were girls would not help his case later on.

As Celeste was usually alone, finding her was not a problem. She happened to be in the library, and upon entrance, Byakuya looked up and promptly looked back down at his book. He only leaves when Sayaka's with him, as that always turns into a nuisance. Since he couldn't care less about what they would talk about, Makoto doesn't try to lower his voice as he approaches her.

"Hey Celeste."

"Hello Makoto. Is there anything I can do for you?"

"I just wanted to talk a little."

"My, is that your only pick-up line? It seems to be your favorite, as I recall you using something similar with Mukuro." Amusement laces her voice as Makoto's genricness shines through.

"Well, you know me. I'm pretty predictable."

"Oh, absolutely. In fact, I am certain you would make one of the best and one of the worst gamblers."

"Best and worst? What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, you would definitely have a terrible poker face. That much I can be sure of. After all, you spoke to me in attempt to befriend me after Sayaka was annoyed with me. Unless I am wrong?"

He just sighs. "It's not that I don't want to talk to you, it's just…she was being very loud about it."

"And that you admitted to such proves my point. On the other hand, if you are truly as lucky as your title implies, then you would be an amazing gambler, as much of gambling relies on luck."

"I wouldn't say I'm particularly lucky. Getting invited to Hope's Peak was the first time I ever thought of myself as having good luck. I doubt it would help me much when I need it."

"My, that's a shame. I'm afraid I can't make my dream competition then."

"Your dream competition?"

"My goal would be to play a game of...anything really, against an opponent known for their luck, and an opponent known for their skill. It would be quite amusing to beat both of the extremes at once."

"Which extreme would you say that you lean more towards?"

"Oh luck, definitely." She says with no hesitation. "I won't deny that I have a certain level of skill, but I've won games without even knowing the rules beforehand."

"That's pretty impressive. What did the guy who lost do?"

She waves him off. "He had no idea that it was my first time playing chess."

He backpedals at this. "Wait chess? How did you beat competitive chess players without even knowing the rules?"

"Luck."

"That's it?"

"Entirely luck. Well, that and a little adaptability."

"Wow, looks like I'm not the real Ultimate Luckster here. You seem way more into it."

"On the contrary. That you came out of nowhere under the name lucky student is fascinating. Having someone who is known to be lucky is absolutely pointless, as it is an extremely obvious choice. But, to have a regular person be called lucky, well that is far more interesting, don't you think?"

"When you think about it like that, I guess so. I still don't think that I could be a good candidate for your competition. Sorry about that."

"You needn't worry. I'm sure that I'll find someone of merit someday. After all, if I didn't, that would be uncharacteristically unlucky of me."

A/N: Sorry about the short chapter, but I have a valid excuse. My mom decided it would be a _great_ idea to unplug everything from our broken computer- including the source of our wi-fi! I spent a good hour on hold at Best Buy, to no avail. The best part was, I tried plugging it back in, but that doesn't work when she went and hid one of the cords I needed. Needless to say, Google docs would not cooperate, as I couldn't access the beginning of my chapter. When she gave me the bag of cords, I tried not to let my anger at all existence show.


	21. Chapter 21 Sayaka and Hifumi

A/N: Weird choice, I know. If you read the name of the chapter you'll know what I mean. I just needed some things to be set up, so why not?

So yes, Mondo had started to show up to class a little more consistently. And yes, it was Taka that had brought him to that mindset. Unfortunately, they were back at each other's throats almost immediately. Sure, Taka's uptight attitude bothered a lot of people, but no one cared enough to try to argue. After all, they could just ignore him and they'd be fine. Mondo hadn't quite gotten into this mindset and continued to take the hard way out. Everyone had become fed up with it, but no one dared to interfere.

Well, until Sayaka got bored, that is.

The stupidity of the guys was getting to her, so she developed a master plan to get them to stop. Well, she hadn't quite developed the plan, but she had a plan for a plan! In order for her plan to even exist, she needed an expert in the field. But who would have the knowledge about bringing bitter rivals together? Who could save the 78th class from bashing the two boys' heads together?

Hifumi Yamada could, that's who.

"So Hifumi, you're like, really into all sorts of media, right?"

He pushes up his glasses. "Of course Miss Maizono. One does not simply claim the badge of an otaku without being truly diversified. It would be shameful to have a narrow view of modern art. So tell me, what knowledge do you desire from me? Whether it be manga, anime, or video games, I assure you that I will not disappoint."

"Do you know any stories where complete opposites become really good friends?"

"Ohohoho. Such a simple question, but I promised you an answer, so you shall have one. There are many stories that take that route, as it is a very common plot. Many characters have became friends after great hardship and many difficult battles, and yet others simply needed time. Slowly, over struggle and through finding common ground, many a rival have become the greatest allies that their world has ever seen!"

"Ok, that's nice and all, but I don't think much battling will happen anytime soon. I meant more like, specific examples that seem to work very well. And hopefully fast."

"While epic quests seem to be the most effective way of making friends, I suppose I can give you some ideas. I watched an amazing anime where a group of students bonded very quickly when they all though they were going to die at any moment. Does that sate your curiosity?"

"Not at all. I would prefer not be arrested thank you very much. I was thinking a tad more on the legal side."

Hifumi huffs at this. "Well, I had no idea you were actually trying to engineer a situation where people would need to get over their differences. I do however, find it interesting. I did read a story in which two strangers bonded over being stuck in the frigid mountains, but I do not believe that will suit your needs, either."

Sayaka looks a little miffed for a second, until she breaks out into a grin. "I think I just had the best idea in a long while. Thanks so much for your help Hifumi, but I gotta get planning! See you around!" Immediately after saying her piece she ran off to go make plans.

"Um...what did I just do?"

A/N: Guys,the broness is on its way. Chapter is pretty short, but it's also not supposed to be important or emotional. Shit like Chihiro and Sakura, that's what's gonna be the long chapters.


	22. Chapter 22 Leon and Sayaka and insanity

A/N: Once upon a time, I dreamed that Mondo and Taka would become friends through mutual understanding. Then one day, I realized that that idea was completely out of character for the both of them, so this happened.

"First question. How the hell did you get access to the security room?" The one who asked this was a dumbstruck Leon who was dragged here by none other than Sayaka. It was a Sunday, and not much was happening, so he accepted her invitation to hang out. But this...wasn't quite what he was expecting.

"Easy. I just appealed to the school board and said it was for an independent project. Well, more specifically I said it was a study on human relations."

"Uh huh. Care to explain why Mondo and Taka are in that empty classroom together?" He was referring to security camera footage that was currently being broadcast live.

"I locked them in there."

"Wait, you what?" Leon shouts in shock. "Why?"

"Their fighting was getting annoying. This seemed like a peaceful resolution."

"In what way is locking the two of them in with no escape peaceful?"

"Nobody dies. That's peaceful enough for me." She says in a cheery tone, then thinks for a moment. "Well, unless they kill each other, but I was kinda hoping that wouldn't happen."

"From what I'm seeing right now, that seems pretty likely." On the screen, the two of them appeared to be yelling at each other. "Hey, why don't you have a microphone in there?"

"So that when they have their epiphany they can have it in peace."

"I still don't understand how you think that's realistic."

"Well, not under these conditions, but that doesn't mean they can't change. If you look closely, you can see that they're looking a little pale. That's because I set the temperature to lower one degree for every ten minutes they go without making an actual effort to talk to each other. Right now, it's just a few degrees above freezing. Thank god for this school's wacky temperature control."

"And how do you know they won't just freeze to death?"

"Well, I'll stop at a certain point. But anyways, they gotta go to the bathroom sometime, right?"

"Yeah, sure. But why did you need me here?"

"So you can watch the camera while I play on my phone, obviously. You don't have to do much, just look up every once in a while. Oh, and don't rat me out, because then we would have a problem."

He just sighs in resignation. "Fine, fine. I'll just pretend that this isn't obviously illegal."

30 minutes later

"Still goin' strong." Her only reply is an absentminded grunt of approval.

30 minutes after that

"Below freezing and they're still glaring at each other."

20 minutes after that.

Leon suddenly jumps out of his chair. "Holy shit!"

"What?"

"Dude, they're freaking _stripping._ How the hell are we supposed to respond to this?"

"We let it happen."

"I feel like nothing good can come of- oh my god they're crying. Two shirtless dudes are crying on each other and I have no idea how to handle this."

"Yes!" Sayaka jumps up and down with joy. "They did it! Now, let's raise the temperature and get out of here before we're caught. They'll be found later. I'll just leave the key here and you'll be my alibi, ok?"

"Alibi? Now I really feel like I committed a crime…"

A/N: This. I know I already did this pair, but some groups are more important than others. Don't get me wrong, everyone is important, but they'll probably be multiple chapters on Hina and Sakura, Celeste and Hifumi, and you get the drift.


	23. Chapter 23 Makoto and Toko

A/N: Please note that after this chapter, I'm completely lost. The request stream has kinda slowed down, and I'm always eager to please.

After the class had been thoroughly scarred by the testosterone and bro puns coming out of a certain pair after a certain incident, school got out for the day. While Makoto didn't know what to make of the two's newfound bond, he realized that that wasn't his current issue. No, his problem was that he had no idea where Toko had run off to. It had been a couple days since he had confronted Celeste, and he thought she appreciated the gesture, but he couldn't really be sure. He didn't want to confront Toko right after class as he knew that probably wouldn't go very well, so he had to let her leave. Over the last few days, he realized that he had no idea where she could possibly be. Until…

He gave himself a well-deserved facepalm. "Why did I never check the library? She's an author!"

And there she was, hiding behind a bookshelf, watching the most frequent inhabitant of the library. Her infatuation with Byakuya Togami was common knowledge at this point, and no one had really tried to understand it. Well, except for Hifumi who predicted that everyone would soon see her true yandere nature.

Byakuya knew she was there, of course, as it was definitely not the first time. But she had miraculously not spoken directly to him since he forbad her to, and he had no intention of encouraging her.

Makoto was not dumb enough to sneak up on her, as she would most definitely scream, so he decided to just to walk straight up to her.

"Hey, Toko."

"Gyaa!" Even though he was standing right next to her, she didn't seem to notice him until he spoke up.

"Woah, sorry about that. I didn't mean to scare you."

He is immediately treated to a glare. "W-what do you want?"

"I just wanted to-wow I am generic." He laughs at himself a little. "I wanted to see how you were doing."

"W-why would you care? I-it's not even like I k-know you or anything."

"Sure, we don't know each other very well, but I'm making an effort to talk to all my classmates."

She snorts. "O-obviously. I'm just one of the c-crowd aren't I? I-i'm only part of your s-stupid obligation because I'm in your class. Just like h-how I was invited to the p-party because I'm a girl. T-though you probably c-could've made it in."

Knowing what she was implying, he just sighs. "It's not obligation, you know. I want to."

"Y-yeah right. It's always the g-guys like y-you that are the d-dirtiest. They p-pretend to be nice, but they j-just want something." She looks at him in disgust. "Y-you're all the same."

"Come on, that generalization is a little unfair."

"Hundreds."

"Huh?"

"I-i think after a couple h-hundred I can say it and be c-completely fair." She trails off at the end. "P-pretty face, nice personality, p-popular, and they all turn out to be s-scum."

He looks at her both a little shocked, and a little worried. "I'm sorry."

"No you're not."

"Well, I am."

She looks at him and mutters to herself. "E-even though he's lying, i-it's not like he's d-done anything yet. I-it should be fine."

"What should be fine?"

"Gah! N-nothing!"

"Ok…"

"W-whatever. W-why are you still here?"

"I said I wanted to get to know you, and that's what I'm doing."

"Geez! Y-you are so f-frustrating! You know me p-plenty, and I would appreciate it if you l-left me a-alone."

"But…"

"Fine! F-follow me around like some w-weirdo! Just do it another time! I'm busy." She brushes him off as Byakuya gets up in preparation to leave.

"Wanna come back here tomorrow?"

"Yeah, sure whatever." She hadn't noticed what she agreed to, but nonetheless, she showed up the next day without knowing why.

A/N: This was going to be longer and much more full of revelations, but we can't stuff all the character into one chapter, now can we? On a side note, I put _way_ too much thought into the moments when she stuttered.


	24. Update

A/N: Sorry this isn't a real chapter. I apologize in advance because I have no idea when I'll post the next chapter. I was planning to write it last Thursday, but I was swamped with homework. Then on Friday, I was too stressed to write. And starting yesterday, I got really sick. It's not life-threatening or anything, but I have a terrible headache, and I got sick today. I'll do my best to post sometime this week. Thank you so much for all your requests.


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